Chapter 26 The Tapioca Flour Scandal
"Greetings to Prince Guo, greetings to the Fourth Prince."
Zhen Huan cautiously emerged from behind the shade of the tree, her face showing embarrassment.
"Greetings, Lady Wan."
Hongli was somewhat surprised, but still greeted her politely. However, Yunli, standing to the side, looked wary and his attitude towards Zhen Huan was not so friendly.
"Consort Wan's appearances are always so unexpected. Why is Consort Wan out at the palace banquet?"
Sensing the probing in Prince Guo's words, Zhen Huan felt somewhat embarrassed, but she didn't panic. Lowering her eyes to avoid suspicion, she replied softly, "I was drunk, so I came out for a walk with my maid. On a whim, we ended up at this Tonghua Terrace."
“That Miss Wan has gone quite far.”
Yunli couldn't help but make another sarcastic remark, but Hongli beside him pulled him back before he could continue.
"Since Your Highness is in such a refined mood, I, Hongli, will not disturb you any longer. Farewell."
"Fourth Prince, take care."
Zhen Huan breathed a sigh of relief, grateful to Hongli for getting her out of trouble once again, but at the same time her impression of Prince Guo, Yunli, worsened.
However… watching the two figures, one tall and one short, disappear into the distance, Zhen Huan seemed to be deep in thought. It seemed that the Fourth Prince had a good relationship with Prince Guo.
Zhen Huan had a bad impression of Yunli, and conversely, Yunli had an even worse impression of Zhen Huan.
On the way back, Yunli couldn't help but frown. He usually didn't like to gossip, but now, worried that Hongli might be deceived, he felt he had to say a few more words.
"We should avoid this Consort Wan as much as possible in the future. Meeting her once could be an accident, but meeting her twice is no longer an accident. Tonghua Terrace is so remote and secluded, how could a newly arrived concubine find her so easily, especially when both of us are here?"
Hongli also seemed to be deep in thought, looking at Yunli with concern, "If Consort Wan came to Tonghua Terrace with good intentions, it must be for Seventeenth Uncle. Seventeenth Uncle should also be careful."
Upon hearing Hongli's words, Yunli couldn't help but recall that night at Yimei Garden. He followed behind the Emperor and watched as Consort Wan, who had not yet been summoned to the Emperor's bedchamber, used the pretext of praying for blessings to play hard to get, and afterwards, she indeed received continuous favor from the Emperor.
Thinking of the little portrait she left on the tree branch, could it have been aimed at him?
Yunli felt a chill run down his spine, his gaze growing even more serious. "You're right. I sense that Consort Wan's ambitions are far from small. Whether it's her resemblance to Empress Chun Yuan, her shared interests, even her identical mistakes in poetry, or her reputation as a 'female Zhuge Liang'... I wonder if Consort Wan has some powerful backer?"
"Now that we know, we can take precautions. Uncle Seventeen should just avoid us as much as possible from now on."
You're right.
Yunli nodded in agreement. From then on, he regarded Zhen Huan as a monstrous threat and avoided her at all costs, fearing that he might get involved with her in the slightest.
...
Hongli and Yunli separated halfway through the banquet and did not return. The next day, they learned from Wang Qin, who was in charge of gathering information from the outside world, that everything at the banquet the previous night had been peaceful, except for Princess Wenyi spitting up milk.
Hongli raised an eyebrow slightly, wondering if the cassava flour drama would happen again this time.
Maintaining a spectator's mindset, sure enough, a few days later, they learned that Wenyi's condition had worsened. The imperial physician suspected that Wenyi's food had upset her stomach and discovered that the water chestnut soup the child was eating had been replaced with tapioca flour. Then, they suspected Consort Wan.
Emperor Yongzheng questioned Zhen Huan about whether anyone could testify that she had been away from the banquet for a long time that night. In this critical moment, Consort Duan, who had been ill for a long time, stepped forward to testify for Zhen Huan, saying that Zhen Huan had been with her the night before.
With no suspects left, the matter ended with the execution of two eunuchs from the imperial kitchen.
Hongli knew that Consort Hua was using Wenyi as a pawn to target Zhen Huan. Yongzheng was unable to deal with Consort Hua because of Nian Gengyao, but Consort Duan... wasn't she really seriously ill this time? Why is she out again?
Let's rewind to the day when Consort Duan and Zhen Huan walked out of Qingliang Palace together.
"Thank you so much, Your Highness, for helping me out of this predicament today." Zhen Huan bowed gratefully to Consort Duan, thanking her for speaking up for her, but it would be a lie to say that she had no doubts.
"I have my reasons for helping you." Qi Yuebin supported herself on Jixiang's arm, trying her best to remain calm. This time, she had truly come despite being ill.
"Does Your Majesty believe that I am innocent?" Zhen Huan pressed.
“That day, I saw you passing by my palace gate with your maid. I calculated the time carefully and knew it wasn’t you.” Qi Yuebin’s explanation was reasonable and well-founded, and Zhen Huan breathed a sigh of relief.
"I was in such a hurry that day that I did not see Your Majesty. I hope Your Majesty will forgive me."
"These are all minor matters. Princess Wenyi is very cute, it's just a pity that she has suffered so much at such a young age..." Qi Yuebin sighed meaningfully, "Children in the palace, though seemingly noble, suffer far more calamities than children outside. This matter is aimed at you, Consort Wan. Consort Wan, you must take good care of yourself. I can protect you once today, but I cannot do this in every situation."
Zhen Huan seemed to be deep in thought, and respectfully bowed to Qi Yuebin, saying, "Thank you for your thoughtfulness, Your Highness. I will come to visit you whenever I have time."
"No need. I am ill and frail and it is inconvenient for me to see people. Besides, it would be more beneficial for me not to see Consort Wan."
Qi Yuebin coughed lightly twice, waved his hand, and parted ways with Zhen Huan.
On the way, Jixiang noticed Consort Duan's unusually pale and haggard face and couldn't help but ask with heartache, "Your Highness, you haven't fully recovered yet, why did you come all this way to testify for Consort Wan?"
“You don’t understand,” Qi Yuebin gazed at the distant scenery, a sorrowful smile on his face. “My health is what it is, but as long as I can cause Nian Shilan distress, I’ll be happy…”
Ever since he discovered that the Emperor's feelings for her and his guilt towards her were actually not that great, the only reason that kept Qi Yuebin alive was to take revenge on Consort Hua, or perhaps it was not just about taking revenge on Consort Hua...
Thinking of Zhen Huan's face, Qi Yuebin chuckled, a suppressed, lucid madness in his eyes. This was the best weapon Heaven had bestowed upon her; Zhen Huan, this blade, was now honed. It could wound Nian Shilan, wound Yixiu, and even wound the Emperor…
"The green dress is charming, but the pink flowers embellishing it, along with the pink shoes, make it rather tacky..."
Huanbi hid by the lake alone, thinking about what the Emperor had just said, and couldn't help but shed tears.
"Miss Huanbi!"
Hearing someone call her, Huanbi wiped away her tears and turned around awkwardly, only to see the tall and handsome Fourth Prince Hongli standing not far away, looking at her.
Huanbi blushed instantly, feeling embarrassed, and bowed to him awkwardly and hurriedly: "Huanbi greets Fourth Prince."
As for Wang Ren, who was standing behind Hongli and holding the book for him, and who was the first to call her name, she completely ignored him.
"Get up, Wang Ren, do you recognize this young lady?"
Hongli called out gently, then turned to ask Wang Ren. Only then did Huanbi notice that there was a familiar-looking eunuch present.
Before Wang Ren could answer, Huanbi hurriedly explained, "I am Consort Wan's dowry maid."
“The jade hairpin that the prince asked me to return last time belonged to this Miss Huanbi,” Wang Ren added, and Hongli seemed to only then remember.
"Yes, I left in a hurry and haven't had a chance to thank the Fourth Prince yet."
Huanbi bit her lip and gave a somewhat embarrassed bow. If her previous attempt to seduce the Emperor was for power and status, and she felt shy and nervous in front of him, now, looking at the Fourth Prince and remembering that she had just tried to seduce his father, Huanbi felt an even greater sense of unease and shame.
"No need to be so polite, it was just a small favor. Why is Miss Huanbi crying by the lake?"
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